Avolon full-year revenue more than doubles

(Reuters) - Chinese-owned aircraft leasing company Avolon said on Thursday its full-year 2017 revenue more than doubled as it benefited from the acquisition of CIT Group’s aircraft leasing assets.

Avolon posted revenue of $2.37 billion for full year 2017, up from $1.04 billion in 2016 and said that its owned, managed and committed fleet more than doubled to 908 aircraft.

The Irish firm, which counts U.S.-based Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways among its customers, posted profit after tax of $550 million, compared with $345 million in 2016.

Avolon said it ended the year with $5.03 billion of liquidity. This comes about a month after Chief Executive Domhnal Slattery said the company was adequately protected, seeking to dispel concerns about the risk of being stripped for cash by China’s HNA Group.

Avolon has come under scrutiny over its links to HNA and credit ratings analysts said last month it would benefit from tougher safeguards against being forced to bail out the cash-strapped Chinese conglomerate.